The Largest Short-Term Threat to Humanity: The Fuel Pools of Fukushima

Zero Hedge ^ | April 7, 2012 | na

[aruanan]

We noted days after the Japanese earthquake that the biggest threat was from the spent fuel rods in the fuel pool at Fukushima unit number 4, and not from the reactors themselves...

Thank Jimmy Carter for that.

[Errant]

You can thank Jimmy for a lot of stupid regulations. Nearby, we've got one of the largest coal fired power plants in the country, in a state with an abundance of natural gas. The coal is barged and brought in by rail from Virgina and Montana; imagine what that costs!

Meanwhile underneath the conveyor belt that carries the coal a mile or two from the port where the barges unload to the power plant, runs a 42" compressed natural gas pipeline.

So instead of using low cost, clean burning natural gas produced inside our state, we're forced to burn expensive coal, contaminating our lakes with mercury (you can only safely eat a small amount locally caught fish monthly), and haze in the atmosphere that settles out onto our vehicles.

Btw, to get the coal here required the river to be made navigable, which cost you and the American taxpayers 3+ billion dollars just for the construction of the lock and dam systems. That initial cost doesn't include annual maintenance, dredging or operational costs.

Thank you Jimmy Dumb@ss Carter...

[Errant]

Has Chernobyl killed you?

LOL, Next question...

[TXnMA]

;-) Glad you took that the way it was intended! ‘-)